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Saturday, July 17, 2010

My Closet Muse

I have a closet muse. Really. She doesn't come out to help me when I most need it. Nope. She waits until I'm half asleep and prods my tired brain to think. Think! When I want to sleep. And here is the villain plotting all kinds of evil deeds in my current work-in-progress, Dreaming of the Wolf, and a police officer bringing up all kinds of uncomfortable questions for the heroine to answer and why is all of this playing in my head when it's time to sleep?

If I ignore my Muse, she will force more ideas into my tired brain until I either wear out and truly fall asleep, believing I will remember the scene for the morning, or, I give in and turn on the light, hastily write the scene, and go back to sleep, with her blessing. But woe to me who fails to listen to her musings, because in the morning if I haven't written them down, can I remember a one of them? Rarely. And that's her way of getting back at me!

Night time Muse disturbances aren't the only times she decides to pay me a visit. I'd like to say that all my brilliant ideas come from me, but I know she guides me along my merry way. But sometimes, she just doesn't know when to quit!

Here, I'll be driving to work and she's giving me a great scene! While I'm driving! And I can't just pull the car over to write it all down. Think I'll remember it by the time I have my lunch break, 4 1/2 hours later? Or she'll do it to me when I'm in the shower! In the shower!!! Now, that's just plain cruel.

But when I'm stumped, you think she'll lend an ear while I'm staring at a blank screen, trying to write the next scene? Sure...as soon as I've put out the lights and closed my eyes for the night.

Hmm, I'm beginning to think she's got a little wolf's blood in her. :) Ah, now that would be the thing--a hunky werewolf muse.

My Muse will probably make me pay for this blog when I go to bed tonight!

Even if you're not a writer, do you ever think of something you need to do and if you don't make a note of it, or do it, by morning or when you have a chance to do whatever it is, it's gone??? Vaporized in all that gray matter?

Then, what do you do??? Fire your Muse???

Hope your Muse doesn't stay in the closet for long! :)

Mine is not allowed!!! My next two proposed books SOLD to Sourcebooks!!! That makes Book 9 and 10!!! How about a Highland Wolf in Paradise? And The Wolf and the SEAL.

THE HIGHLAND WOLF IN PARADISE is a follow up of one of the brothers in HEART OF THE HIGHLAND WOLF who is in search of the man who stole the clan's money, only he finds a mermaid in the sea. Well, not really, but close enough. :) But how to get the money back is the question? While one botanist distracts the Highlander from his duty.

And THE WOLF AND THE SEAL is Meara's story, from TO TEMPT THE WOLF. She's on an alpha man hunt. She doesn't expect a former team mate of Hunter's to show up. And he's definitely not on her list of eligible bachelors. He's not there in that capacity either--but to protect her from someone who wants the team members dead--and with Hunter on honeymoon, she's the next target.

And, and, AND!!! here is another absolutely gorgeous cover from Sourcebooks, Book 7, due out Jun 2011,HEART OF THE HIGHLAND WOLF!!!

Now, even if you are not into Highlanders, and even if you are not into wolves, would you turn HIM away???

Hope you have a Muse and that she...or he...is helping you along your merry way! I'm off to put the finishing touches on DREAMING OF THE WOLF, Book 8, and drool over book 7's cover of the hunky Highland Wolf!!!

I have a muse like that, Terry - the fickle one, not the yummy man one (DARN!). Our muses must have trained in the same muse academy. Mine is most active when I'm trying to sleep in on non-work days. She will NOT hear of it.

Congrats on selling 2 more wolf books! Love the new cover. He can fling my highland any day. Your good news abounds. I love good news! YAY!

Olivia, lol, yes, I'm sure they trained at the same place!!! Hmm, if we threatened to exchange them for the hunky ones...wonder if that would help, or make it worse! Thanks so much on the sales and cover. It's gorgeous, don't you think!

Wow! What an awesome cover! And your muse? Definitely think he would inspire anyone. And yes I too am often woken in the night, or given fabulous ideas while driving or at work so I can't write them down! Fickle darn muses....

Congrats on more books, Terry! I am psyched to know you will be around with us for a while, and your wonderful wolves. : )

Hmm, Sharon, would he inspire or....distract??? :) Thanks on the cover! It is gorgeous! And yes, you're stuck with me. Isn't that wonderful??? :) I'm sorry to hear your muse bothers you while you're driving too. Someone told me once to take a tape recorder with me. :)

I was just going to suggest getting a tape recorder. You could keep it on a nightstand so you could whisper your ideas into it and then drift back to sleep. Don't forget to hit the stop button though. lol It would be alot easier and less time consuming to just record your thoughts instead of writing them down.

Ladies, your muses sound like naughty little creatures, but as long as the ideas are still flowing, I'd keep them around a little while longer. Who knows what gem they's bring you next time. ; )

I've learned to file thoughts away for later and once I have a moment I write them down. When I first tried this I used to forget things but now if I have a really good thought for a project I mentally tag the idea and put it on a shelf in my head so that later I can retrieve it. I probably still forget a few things but it just isn't practical sometimes to stop and write it down.

I'm chiming in late, I actually read your post yesterday and was about to comment when something happened, the dog, the kids...who knows.

I think my muse died. I used to take my dog Sambuca out for his last pee of the night and ideas used to come to me. We had to put him down last week and even though I'm taking Jasmine (our other dog) out, nothing has come to me and I'm completely stuck. Sigh...

I'm sorry for your loss, Robin. When my father died, I couldn't write at all. I was devastated. I kept thinking about him and the stories he used to share with me, and then I finally wrote his story. And it worked. The Thirteenth Mission was published in the EX-POW Bulletin, my very first published story, and I started getting lots of stories published after that. I've written special stories about my dogs too, all of my pets that are gone now, but one of the stories was in True Romance. So sometimes if you can just write something special about them, through all the tears, it can help you to breakthrough.

I hope it helps, Robin. I was told that time will help. But I didn't want to have to wait when losing those I love to feel better. So I have to do something, and that's what helped me. Everyone handles grief in different ways.

All my best and heartfelt hugs for your loss. I truly know what you're going through.